Marvelous Movies from the Motor City
Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow's new film Detroit (2017) is based on the Algiers Motel incident during Detroit's 1967 12th Street Riot. It is being released to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the event, part of the USA's biggest race riots.
Which of these best-known Detroit films have you found most interesting?
Discuss the list here
Which of these best-known Detroit films have you found most interesting?
Discuss the list here
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35 titles
- DirectorCraig R. BaxleyStarsCarl WeathersCraig T. NelsonVanityVengeance drives a tough Detroit cop to stay on the trail of a power-hungry auto magnate who is systematically eliminating his competition.
- DirectorJean-François RichetStarsEthan HawkeLaurence FishburneGabriel ByrneA police sergeant must rally the cops and prisoners together to protect themselves on New Year's Eve, just as corrupt policeman surround the station with the intent of killing all to keep their deception in the ranks.
- DirectorDaniel PetrieStarsLaurence OlivierRobert DuvallKatharine RossThe aging, retired founder of an auto giant comes out of retirement to try to develop a safe, fuel-efficient car.
- DirectorMartin BrestStarsEddie MurphyJudge ReinholdJohn AshtonA freewheeling Detroit cop pursuing a murder investigation finds himself dealing with the very different culture of Beverly Hills.
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsRichard PryorHarvey KeitelYaphet KottoWhen three automotive factory workers who're struggling financially try to steal from their own labor union, they discover corruption, and reluctantly decide to use this information for blackmail.
- DirectorTom PutnamBrenna SanchezStarsDonald AustinBrendan Doogie MilewskiCraig DoughertyA documentary about Detroit told through the eyes of firefighters charged with the thankless task of saving a city that many have written off as dead.
- DirectorAlex ProyasStarsBrandon LeeMichael WincottRochelle DavisA man brutally murdered comes back to life as an undead avenger of his and his fiancée's murder.
- DirectorArthur MarksStarsAlex RoccoHari RhodesVonetta McGeeAfter a fundraiser for a black politician is robbed, Detroit police put two detectives, one white and one black, on the case, who try to work together under boiling political pressure.
- DirectorAdam RifkinStarsEdward FurlongGiuseppe AndrewsJames DeBelloIn 1978, four rebellious teenagers try to scam their way into a KISS concert.
- DirectorHeidi EwingRachel GradyStarsNoah StewartRachele GilmnoreMichael WankoA documentary on the city of Detroit and its woes, which are emblematic of the collapse of the U.S. manufacturing base.
- DirectorFede AlvarezStarsStephen LangJane LevyDylan MinnetteHoping to walk away with a massive fortune, a trio of thieves break into the house of a blind man who isn't as helpless as he seems.
- DirectorBill CondonStarsBeyoncéJamie FoxxEddie MurphyA trio of black female soul singers cross over to the pop charts in the early 1960s, facing their own personal struggles along the way.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsEminemBrittany MurphyKim BasingerFollows a young rapper in the Detroit area, struggling with every aspect of his life; he wants to make it big but his friends and foes make this odyssey of rap harder than it may seem.
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsKevin CostnerKelly PrestonJohn C. ReillyAfter 19 years of playing the game he's loved his whole life, Detroit Tigers pitcher Billy Chapel has to decide if he's going to risk everything and put everything out there.
- DirectorJohn SingletonStarsMark WahlbergTyrese GibsonAndré 3000When their adoptive mother is gunned down in a store robbery, four brothers decide to investigate the murder and find the killers themselves, but not all is what it seems.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodBee VangChristopher CarleyAfter a Hmong teenager tries to steal his prized 1972 Gran Torino, a disgruntled, prejudiced Korean War veteran seeks to redeem both the boy and himself.
- DirectorVondie Curtis-HallStarsTupac ShakurTim RothThandiwe NewtonTwo friends try to kick their drug addiction after a friend dies from an overdose, when they try to enroll in a detox program, things quickly go wrong.
- DirectorGeorge ArmitageStarsJohn CusackMinnie DriverDan AykroydMartin Blank is a professional assassin. He is sent on a mission to a small Detroit suburb, Grosse Pointe, and, by coincidence, his ten-year high school reunion party is taking place there at the same time.
- DirectorDanny DeVitoStarsJack NicholsonDanny DeVitoArmand AssanteThe story of the notorious American labor union figure Jimmy Hoffa, who organizes a bitter strike, makes deals with members of the organized crime syndicate and mysteriously disappears in 1975.
- DirectorArthur PennStarsWarren BeattyAlexandra StewartHurd HatfieldAfter the mob tries to kill him for an unknown reason, a comedian steals the identity of a homeless man and goes on the run.
- DirectorStan DragotiStarsMichael KeatonTeri GarrFrederick KoehlerAfter he's suddenly laid off, a husband switches roles with his wife. She returns to the workforce, and he becomes a stay-at-home dad, and he has to take care of three young children, a job he has no clue how to do.
- DirectorJoe CarnahanStarsRay LiottaJason PatricChi McBrideWhen the trail goes cold on a murder investigation of a policeman, an undercover narcotics officer is lured back to the force to help solve the case.
- DirectorJim JarmuschStarsTilda SwintonTom HiddlestonMia WasikowskaA depressed musician reunites with his lover. However, their romance, which has already endured several centuries, is disrupted by the arrival of her uncontrollable younger sister.
- DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsGeorge ClooneyJennifer LopezVing RhamesA career bank robber breaks out of jail, and shares a moment of mutual attraction with a U.S. Marshal he has kidnapped.
- DirectorAlex MarchStarsAlan AldaLauren HuttonJoe SchmidtSportswriter George Plimpton poses as a rookie quarterback for the Detroit Lions for a "Sports Illustrated" article.
- DirectorAlan J. PakulaStarsHarrison FordRaul JuliaGreta ScacchiAs a lawyer investigates the murder of a colleague, he finds himself more connected to the crime than anyone else.
- DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsPeter WellerNancy AllenDan O'HerlihyIn a dystopic and crime-ridden Detroit, a terminally wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg haunted by submerged memories.or the remake
- DirectorJerry SchatzbergStarsGene HackmanAl PacinoDorothy TristanAn ex-con drifter with a penchant for brawling is amused by a homeless ex-sailor, so they partner up as they head east together.
- DirectorMalik BendjelloulStarsRodriguezStephen 'Sugar' SegermanDennis CoffeyTwo South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock n roller, Rodriguez.
- StarsCharles Malik WhitfieldD.B. WoodsideTerron BrooksBiography of the singers who formed the hit Motown musical act, The Temptations.
- DirectorAlan ShapiroStarsLindsay BarrDave BokasChris BremerAlex and his father are Detroit Tigers Fans. The team is not doing well and Alex's favorite player "Billy Young" isn't either. The team's and Billy's luck turn around after Alex experiences a tragedy that hits close to home.
- DirectorPaul SloaneStarsEvelyn BrentFrank AlbertsonConstance CummingsSeveral traveling salesmen get involved with business, booze, romance, party girls and a lot more while staying at a hotel Detroit.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsChristian SlaterPatricia ArquetteDennis HopperIn Detroit, a pop-culture nerd steals cocaine from his new wife's pimp and tries to sell it in Hollywood, prompting the mobsters who own the drugs to pursue the couple.
- DirectorSofia CoppolaStarsKirsten DunstJosh HartnettJames WoodsA group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.
- DirectorAnthony DrazanStarsMichael RapaportDeShonn CastleKevin CorriganA white, hip-hop loving teen falls in love with a black girl.